Last of the Brave
by Angel's Anthem
Summary: Captain Rex and his CO are enjoying a fair game of poker when, suddenly, a third player sits in. He introduces himself as their new trainee. Turns out, there's actually three of them. And, they're nothing more than a babbling nutcase, a pyromaniac with an attitude, and a timid sucker. As the Veterans lose their cool... insanity is soon to follow.


**Last of The Brave: Royal Flush**

* * *

Captain Rex and his superior, Commander Cody, were eagerly playing a game of poker, steadily focused on the hand they had been dealt. For little over an hour the game had continued, and neither one of them had thrown in the towel just yet. In the meantime, Rex would frequently eye his CO from above his row of cards in front of him, searching for some clue that would unravel Cody's defeat.

Amidst their unwavering silence, they had been unaware of the third member who had sat in on their rivalry game. The newcomer reclined in his chair studying his own hand of cards while awkwardly mimicking their silence. He nervously looked between the two veterans, completely wide-eyed. Finally, the three of them bet on their hands, each omitting a satisfied grin.

"Well, if you're going to bet, now's y'chance."

"Why don't you go first?" Cody suggested, relaxing against his recreational chair.

"Oh, nice try, sir. I'm not fallin' for that again. Either you place your bet first, or your hand is forfeit."

"If that's what you want, Rex ol' boy," Cody shrugged.

"Without a doubt. Now, show me the goods."

With a deceptive sigh, Cody revealed his cards. In an attempt to hide his corny grin, he placed a hand over his mouth. Slapped across the table were a set of Aces. Patiently waiting for Rex's response, he studied the captain's defeat; though it was merely a façade. Once again leaning back in his chair, the commander relaxed with his hands folded behind his head. Drowning in confidence, Cody was sure he had won this round. Suddenly Rex flashed him a boastful smile, at the last possible second, and smoothly spread his cards out across his side of the table. Falling forward, Cody chocked at the sight of his friend's final hand.

"Straight Flush!" Cody's accent thickened, "How'd ya come up with that?"

"Luck, friend," Rex cackled, gathering up his winnings, "A deal's a deal, Commander. The first five rounds are on you!"

"The bet was three rounds, you bloody cheat!"

"No,with Echo as my witness, you said five," the captain eyed the Arc Trooper standing to his left, "Isn't that right?"

"I'd rather stay out of this one," Echo nervously backed away.

"Excuse me..." chimed a new voice.

"Backing down from another fight, are we?" taunted Rex, his raspy voice making it all the more admonishing.

"Bold me, Captain," Cody retaliated. "Remember what happened to the last soldier who claimed he had a bigger than than I?"

"Who, Gum?" Rex scoffed, "That boy had it comin'."

"Um, sirs?" The veterans exchanged looks before their smiles faded into baffled frowns of confusion.

"Where the blazes did you come from?"

"Relax, Rex ol' boy. He jumped in a few minutes before we placed out bets."

"Is that so, you slimy worm? Sneakin' up on your commanding officers, are we?"

"Actually, sir, I asked if I could join and, well... you said that you didn't care So, I-"

"What? I did not." Rex glanced at Cody for confirmation. He smirked, nodding quickly.

Groaning, Rex returned his irritated gaze back to the private, "Well, come on then, I don't have all day. What do you want?"

"I, um," the shiny cleared his throat, "I have a Royal Flush."

Hunched over in a fit of laughter, Cody grasped his stomach to ease his pulsating muscles. He stood up, slapping the table with his hand while the other was firmly placed against the rookie's shoulder. Rex remained in his seat, arms still tightly wrapped around the winnings. His mouth was gaping open like he'd just been schooled. Actually, he had been by nothing more than a trigger-happy kid. Cody wiped away a fake tear and forced the pile of chips out of the protection of the Captain's grasp.

"But- I- How- ...Oh, forget it!" Rex stood up. While storming off, he mumbled, "Unbelievable..."

The shiny attempted to pursue the captain, "Wait, I-!"

Cody had stopped the shiny before he could follow the captain any further. Wrapping his arm around the rookie, he pulled him away in the opposite direction.

"You just saved me from buying that rascal some liquor. For you, on the other hand, I'd be glad to share a few shots! Can't believe you actually bested the captain, though! Bravo to you, mate."

"Thank you, sir, but-" the shiny hesitantly shook the commander's hand, "-I don't really drink."

"Right, then. I'll be seeing you tonight," Cody dismissed the rookie with a smile, intentionally disregarding his last comment.

Commander Cody turned away to join another group of chaps, hurriedly playing a game of Black Jack. The private eagerly left the hanger bay to regroup with the captain, exiting down the same hallway he had seen the captain leave. Slowing his pace, the shiny reared up on a group of clone brethren. Unfortunately, while the distance between him and the captain increased, their snails-pace tread was in the same direction he was headed. He swayed back and forth with anticipation, occasionally peering over his brothers' shoulders in curiosity; half-heartedly hoping that they'd catch the hint that he was in a hurry.

At this rate, he'd lose the captain for sure and be forced to ask for directions. _How embarrassing! _Shaking the thought away, the private squeezed his slender figure past the troopers, splitting them apart with his arms extended out in front of him. He ignored their rather obscene comments and began to jog the distance he had lost.

_Captain Rex couldn't have possibly gotten too far ahead. As slow as he walks anyway... What am I thinking? Shut up, you fool! With thoughts like these you'll lose control and accidentally slip one out in front of-_

"You followin' me?" The oblivious clone interpreted the phrase as more of an assumption rather than a question.

"Oh, no. I was just trying to find Rex." The shiny's eyes had been directed towards his feet throughout his pursuit. Now, he purposely kept his gaze administered to his feet while embarrassment flushed his face. Bumping into another clone was careless and unnerving.

"That's _Captain_ Rex to you, Rookie." The veteran's voice almost sounded threatening. His hands were clenched in fists, resting against the sides of his hips as he waited for the younger clone to acknowledge his presence.

"Oh! I didn't know it was you!" The rookie stood at attention. "Yes, sir! I was following you, sir!"

The captain waved away his gesture. His attitude towards the boy went from annoyed to EXTREMELY annoyed. Dramatically rolling his eyes, Rex leaned closer to the rookie, making him feel uncomfortable.

"Not here, kid. It's embarrassing."

"Oh, sir. You don't have anything to be embarrassed about around me. I'm sure everyone will understand why I'm saluting you," the shiny beamed. Already, a crowd was beginning to idly stand by to observe his curious behavior.

Rex scoffed, rubbing his temples in complete and utter exasperation. Finally, having caressed away his headache, he motioned for the rookie to follow him.

"I'm guessing you're new here..." the captain muttered.

"Was that rhetorical, sir?"

Groaning with frustration, Rex stopped and faced the rookie, "Look, kid, drop the 'sir' gig."

"Why would I do that, sir?" the rookie exclaimed. He clamped his hand over his mouth and whispered, "Sorry... sir. I mean not sir."

Waving away the soldier's stupidity, Rex began down the hall again. Behind him, the rookie continued to rant. Rex would pick up a few distorted words, some pertaining to the game they had previously played; others referring to how slow the troopers walked through the corridors. It was a miracle that Rex was able to will himself to stay awake, if it weren't for the constant pace he continued in, because his surroundings were rather dull and the maniac that followed him was absolutely daft.

The troopers were no longer as official towards him while he was in their presence. They had been at one point, but that had been years ago; back when he was young and more patriotic. The captain had to constantly remind himself that times had, indeed, changed; along with his age and energy. Their breeding of clones hadn't changed, however their level of preparedness for battle had grown increasingly unstable. Though battles these days were seldom and brief, the demand for more troopers had increased. More systems had sworn their loyalty to the Republic, thus the demand for protection had also increased.

With more trainees, it was harder to be personally acquainted with each brother. So, the captain had shrugged away the formality of how his troops could speak to him. He no longer required them to salute him, or even address him with a title; unless in the presence of another such authority that is. They knew their place, however. Disrespect by any means, taking advantage of his lowered standards, would not be tolerated. It was a lifestyle that Rex had taken time to get used to. Besides, he no longer saw any point in making his soldiers feel like they were any different from him.

"I can't tell you how relieved I am to finally have met you though! I know my-"

"You can tell me all about it in there," Rex sighed, pointing out a door that the rookie assumed was his private quarters. "We're here."

"This is SO exciting!" the rookie admitted, immediately taking a seat on one of the bunks. "Thank you, sir."

"It's just a room," Red mumbled.

"Can I ask what we're doing here, sir?"

"Well, for starters, I needed to find a place where you could call me 'sir' and I not care," Rex said, taking a seat opposite from the rookie, "So here we are."

"Oh, well, thank you, sir. I would-"

"Just tell what you want!" Rex snapped, rubbing the soreness out of his knees. The rookie's shoulders sank in realization that he and the captain were not starting off on the right foot.

"Well, captain, out of courtesy to my squad, I was chosen to introduce... ourselves."

"Son, if you're new, you check in with command, not go around the entire bloody cruiser introducing yourself to every captain and commander." Rex massaged his throbbing temples.

"See, that's what command said, but... a little differently," the rookie explained, "You see, when we heard that your squad had been transferred, they asked for volunteers to fill in the vacant spots."

"What?" Rex suddenly became aware of the shiny's incessant babbling, "You mean, you're one of my new trainees?"

"Yes, sir!" the rookie saluted, "Well, me and the other guys."

Captain Rex eyed him, tightening the grip of his helmet in the cradle of his arms, "What other guys?"

"Well, my plan was for you to meet them in the hanger bay where we were playing cards, but you can see how well that turned out- Hey! Where are you going, sir?"

Captain Rex was already heading for the door while the rookie continued with his explanation. He realized, at least a dozen sentences ago, that he should have recognized the approach of the rookie long before he showed him where his _private _quarters were. He had gained what he needed to hear, if not more. Now, it was time to make things officially _unofficial. _Rex was hesitantly bracing himself for the others to come. If they were anything like their squad mate, the annoying one, it would be a wonder whether or not he would survive the rest of the week.

"Show me where your squad is, shiny," Rex commanded, briskly returning to the hanger bay.

"Of course, sir! I think you're going to like them. They'll respect you in battle, well, maybe not one of them, but I'm sure if they stay on your good side, which is also questionable..."

It was then that Rex decided to put himself on autopilot. He could hear the muffled rambling of the rookie that led him back to the hanger bay, however the captain deliberately willed himself not to comprehend whatever unnecessary chatter left the rookie's mouth.

_Oh, yes... _Rex thought,_ this will be the most excitement I've had all week... Let's hope it's not the death of me._


End file.
